Future to Past
by AnimeGirl 144
Summary: Set pre-Denial for Young Justice. Just a little over a month after Superman returns to his timeline, Brainy is in his lab, messing with a time bubble, something he shouldn't be doing. What happens when it malfunctions and sends him to a time where the name Brainiac can get you killed?
1. Things You Shouldn't Mess With

**I've written for **_Legion of Super Heroes_** before, but this will be my first time crossing it over with **_Young Justice_**. This chapter will come off a little rushed, but hopefully it will be enjoyable for you readers.**

**The story is set post-Season One for LOSH, and it is set pre-Denial for YJ.**

**I don't own either fandom. I wish I did. But wishing on a star doesn't always come true. Lying cricket.**

* * *

Brainy liked to drown himself into projects when upset. His recent reason was because of Superman's departure no more than one month ago. While it had only been a month since Brainy had last seen his idol and best friend, to the 31st Century, Superman was dead. The youngest member knew better than to actual dwell on_ that_.

So, to pass his time, he began to work on the time bubble. He had always planned on fixing it up, and now felt like a good time to do so. The team didn't need him for missions, not with almost all of the Legion housing at the tower once more.

His friends had tried to get him out of working on it, bribing him with trips to museums and other things that Brainy could easily turn down. It was getting so bad that he had to lock his door on them on a weekly basis (since Cosmic Boy and Bouncing Boy would override the command; COMPUTO wasn't as loyal as everyone thought it was). None of them appreciated privacy it seemed, at least when it came to him. Honestly, he may be young, but he was more than capable to take care of himself. They also didn't seem to understand that Brainy just needed to fix up the time bubble and then he'd be good to go.

"Brainy," Saturn Girl said while knocking on his door. "It's not healthy to be locked up like this, even for you."

"Busy," Brainy responded like always.

"Brainy," Saturn Girl sighed.

"I'm almost done," Brainy snapped. He was. He almost had it finished. Then he'd rejoin them and-

Oh...he wasn't supposed to have hit that. That was not a piece to have messed with. Before he could say a thing and reverse what he had done, a sphere encompassed the Coluan. The light flashed, and once it died out, Brainy was no longer around.

* * *

Green Arrow sat with a cup of coffee in one hand and the newspaper in the other, watching the lights on the dashboard do absolutely nothing. Really, why wasn't an intern doing this? This felt like a job for an intern, not him. He'd bring this up, but Batman's already vetoed bringing in innocent civilains. So yeah, he wasn't going to go up against the Bat unless someone was on his side.

He was one of the few members at the Hall. Most everyone else was on patrol or doing heroics elsewhere. Batman, Aquaman, Flash and himself were at the Hall, keeping it running. So really, the Hall was silent with Green Arrow unable to talk to anyone to pass the time. He was about to go back to his paper when he saw a light in the Metropolis area. Something had tipped the radar. Tapping into the satellite, he was able to pull up the video. What he saw almost made him drop his cup.

"This is not good," he commented as he went for his communicator.

"What is it?" Batman grouched.

"We've got a Brainiac clone in the middle of Metropolis Park," Green Arrow said in a serious tone.

"Come again?" Hal Jordan requested, having hoped into the conversation.

"You heard me. He has the Brainiac symbol, looks like him too," Green Arrow said. "He just looks smaller, and he has hair. Weird."

"Jordan, you, Aquaman and I will head out," Batman ordered.

"What about Superman?" Aquaman asked.

"Do you want half of Metropolis to be destroyed?" Batman challenged.

Silence was met to that question, definitely because they couldn't challenge Batman on that statement.

"If we need him, I'll call," Batman said, probably to ease their concerns. "Until then, monitor him."

"Righto," Green Arrow responded, switching off his com. "This may get ugly."

* * *

Hal had arrived to the scene first, and played crowd control with the other police. The Brainiac clone hadn't woken up yet, which was actually a plus for them. However, Hal wasn't willing to face it alone without some back-up. As he was ushering pedestrians away to a safer location, he saw a flying ship appear from the sky and land in the park, only a few feet from where the clone laid. Hal quickly flew over to it, and nearly groaned when he saw the young Team stepping out of it. He really didn't need to watch out for them while dealing with the clone. Double checking that he wouldn't have to worry about the crowd, the Green Lantern flew over to where the group was gathering.

"Is this close enough?" Miss Martian asked.

"Yeah," Artemis responded.

"Hey, what are you kids doing here?" Hal asked, landing in front of the assembled group.

"We're not kids," Superboy snarled in anger.

Hal held up his hands in surrender. A moody Superboy was not who he wanted to deal with at the moment. He needed to be at full strength if he had to deal with the Brainiac. And they have proven themselves as of late, so perhaps they could be trusted with this. And besides, it was better to have nine instead of three up against the thing.

"Alright alright," he consented. "So how did you know to come here?"

"Aside from it being all over the news?" Robin asked with a smirk.

Hal nodded his head. He hadn't thought of that.

"Yeah, I guess that makes sense," he said. "You all realize Batman will have your heads for this."

"Maybe," Robin shrugged. "But I'm not passing up a chance to fight Brainiac."

Hal shook his head. He was going to warn them against overconfidence and to not underestimate Brainiac's ability, when he was cut off by the sound of squealing tires.

_Goodie, Bats is here,_ Hal thought, looking over to watch the Dark Knight and the King of the Sea stepping out of the Batmobile.

The two Leaguers walked over to their assembled group. Hal watched the exact moment that Batman's slits narrowed even more at the sight of the Team. However, he didn't make a comment to them as he stalked past them and to the figure laying against the grass.

"He's a strange one," Aquaman commented. "He looks almost human."

"That's what's weird," Hal said with a nod. "Why would Brainiac have a clone like that?"

Batman shook his head. Something wasn't adding up, but he wasn't sure.

* * *

Brainy felt himself coming back from falling unconscious. The blast had been powerful enough to force him to knock out, which wasn't great because he felt groggy. He started to move his limbs, getting to his knees. It was at that moment that he heard something. Turning his head, his purple optics were focused on several weapons being pointed at him.

_Wonderful,_ he thought dryly.

He stared at the weapons for a moment before blinking when he realized who were pointing the weapons at him.

_I have the Young Justice team and three of the Justice League founders pointing weapons at me,_ Brainy thought to himself. _Which means I'm in the past. So I can safely say I'm in a time where the name Brainiac is going to get me killed._

"Stay down," Batman ordered.

"Right," Brainy responded before his optics landed on the red S on Superboy's shirt. He blinked from surprise. "Superman?"

He watched the eyes widen on "Superman" and then before he can blink, he gets punched in the face. The force from the hit sends the android several feet back, hitting a tree along the way. He gets to his knees once more and moves away just in time to see the fake Superman lunging at him.

_Definitely not Superman,_ Brainy thought as he ran his mind through 21st century history. _No, no this is Superboy. Superman's clone. I don't remember the records mentioning anything about him being this volatile._

He continues to run from the angry Superboy, and can vaguely hear some of the other team members shout at Superboy. An arrow shot past him, taking a lock of his hair as it passed him by.

_Great. Now the whole team is after me,_ he thought. _This may not end well for me._

* * *

"Kent! Why aren't you at the park!?" Perry demanded as he stalked into the newsroom.

"Is there a reason to be there?" Clark asked innocently.

"A damn Brainiac is dueling off with that team of young heroes and three Justice League members!" Perry explained, walking over to the desk.

Clark's eyes widened a little as he stiffened. A Brainiac? _And he wasn't notified?_

"I've heard through the grapevine that it doesn't look like a regular Brainiac. It's smaller, looks almost like a human," Perry continued. "He even has hair like a human! Imagine it, a Brainiac with blond hair. Crazy ain't it?"

_A Brainiac with- Oh no,_ Clark felt his body run cold for a different reason, his thoughts in a panic. _Brainy!_

The reporter was up and out of his seat, running for the elevator. He ignored his fellow workers who were watching him practically break the button.

"I'll get that report on your desk by tomorrow," Clark shouted as he entered the elevator.

"Wai-" Jimmy was cut off when he saw the elevator leave without him. "He's sure in a rush."

* * *

Batman was surprised that the Brainiac clone wasn't fighting back. Instead, it had created a shield using his arm, blocking their attacks. They were trying to corner him, and get close enough for Batman to use his EMP device. It was getting tricky, but they were making headway...

...until a red and blue blur appeared, standing before the clone in protection.

Whoever tipped off Superman about the Brainiac was going to face Batman's wrath. Then again, the media was probably already there, and Superman _did _work for a newspaper. Something was off with Superman though. He wasn't immediately attacking the Brainiac. Instead, he was looking him over... _with concern._

_This is strange,_ Batman thought cautiously.

"You okay?" Superman asked the Brainiac.

The Brainiac looked relieved and dropped his shield, giving Superman a nod. The Man of Steel turned his attention on the heroes, and actually looked a little angry. This was getting more and more annoying for Batman, who wasn't backing down like the others in the face of Superman's glare. It was like Superman was taken over by a completely different person.

"Why wasn't I called?" he demanded.

"Because you go ballistic whenever Brainiac is mentioned," Batman answered, and _did he just see the Brainiac flinch?_

"This is different," Superman responded.

"How so?" Hal asked, keeping his distance.

"Because he's my friend," Superman answered sharply.

The assembled heroes were shocked into silence at the admission. A Brainiac, Superman's sworn enemy, was his _friend_. Brainy stayed silent, knowing he should just let Superman handle the situation since the heroes wouldn't believe a word he said.

"Uuuh, you wanna run that by us again?" Kid Flash asked before remembering who he was talking to and added on, "Sir?"

Superman ran a hand over his face, because he really didn't want to explain this out in the open. Too many people were around. But he couldn't really go back to the Hall with the Team following; they weren't ready for it yet.

"We'll go to the Mountain," Superman said. "I'll explain everything there."

"Sir, do you think it's a good idea to bring the Brainiac to the Mountain?" Aqualad asked cautiously; he didn't want to set off the Man of Steel.

"We'll go," Batman broke in, effectively overruling any misgivings the young heroes had. "And you'll explain everything, got it?"

Superman nodded, then looked over at Brainy.

"Does the flight ring work?" he asked.

"I haven't checked," he responded, before levitating into the air. "Good. It wasn't short-circuited."

"Alright, stick close," Superman responded.

"Is this a good idea?" Kid whispered to Robin.

Robin shrugged.

"Superman seems to trust him. And there's something different about the Brainiac," Robin responded in a whisper. "So we'll just see how it goes."


	2. Temporary Member

**This chapter came out faster than I had thought it would. I'm not sure when the next one will be, but hopefully you will all enjoy this.**

* * *

Several forms began to materialize from the pods, and soon, the assembled heroes where inside Mount Justice. Their guest, Brainy, was looking around the base with a hint of awe in his purple optics.

"I forgot there was a base located here," Brainy commented, as he took a few steps forward.

"You mean you know about this place?" Artemis asked with a heavy dose of suspicion in her tone.

Brainy nodded, feeling just a little uncomfortable in the situation. He could understand why none of them trusted him, but that didn't mean he was comfortable with it. He missed the future more and more.

"Yes," Brainy responded. "But I think it's better if Superman explains it."

"And that's because...?" Kid asked, trailing off to see if the android would continue.

"Because I doubt you'd believe me," Brainy responded logically. "Which, considering the time I'm in, isn't really your fault."

"Considering the time?" Hal repeated, more curious than angry like he knew Batman was. "What, are you from the future or something?"

"Yes," Brainy responded plainly.

The heroes looked at him in stunned silence.

"You're joking, right?" Kid Flash asked.

"Perhaps it would be better if Superman would explain things before I continue," Brainy repeated. "If we continue like this, we'll only confuse you more."

"That would be a good idea," Aqualad agreed, keeping a level head.

"So what's the deal Supes?" Robin asked, the only member comfortable speaking to Superman.

"When I graduated from high school, I was approached by three people who claimed they came from the future," Superman began his explanation. "They were from the 31st century, and they needed my help to face off with some villains. They were a part of the Legion of Super-Heroes, a group of superheroes much like the Justice League."

"31st century, really?" Miss Martian asked with wide eyes.

"I don't think time travel's possible, dude," Kid Flash stated.

"Given your line of work, is it really that improbable?" Brainy asked. Had he been human, he would have been raising an eyebrow at the hero.

Kid Flash fell into silence at the retort because the android had him there. Robin was stifling a laugh because Brainiac or not, this android had a sense of humor. The League members listened intently to the story, and Batman looked ready to kill the teenagers for interrupting.

"Anyways, I met the Legionnaires and started to don my Superman persona while in New Metropolis. Learned just what I could do with my powers, and how I could use them for the greater good," Superman continued. "From there, I made friends with the Legion members, including Brainy here."

"So you're a Legion member?" Aqualad broke in, earning him a glare from Batman who was trying to get the whole story.

Brainy nodded. "I've designed all the equipment used by the Legion members."

"But if you're from the future, how did you get here?" Aqualad asked.

"I was trying to fix the time bubble," Brainy began before he noticed the side glance Superman was giving him. "Don't give me that look. It was just some minor modifications."

"Brainy, the thing was fine as it was. It manages to make it seem like the individual was never taken out of the time stream to begin with. Why would it need to be modified?" Superman asked, forgetting that he was supposed to be explaining to the other heroes.

"I was attempting to speed up the time it takes for the bubble to appear and disappear," Brainy responded with an air of nonchalance. It was his device, and he could do whatever the hell he wanted with it. "Anyways, I accidentally nicked one of the wires, and it placed me here."

"Do you have the technology to send you back?" Artemis asked from where she stood leaning against the wall.

"No, I don't believe so. I hadn't had the chance to look when I first appeared," Brainy responded neutrally. "However, I may be able to form my own time bubble from 21st century technology. It will take me some time, given that the time bubble is technologically more advanced than current tech."

"So if you're really from the future, can you tell me what becomes of me?" Kid Flash asked.

"No," Brainy answered, sounding a little annoyed.

"Oh come on!" Kid Flash whined. "Just something small?"

"No. Revealing your future can jeopardize it," Brainy answered. "If I told you anything about it at any point, you would end up changing it, effectively messing with the timeline. Now do you _really_ want to do that?"

"No," K.F. sighed.

Brainy nodded.

"So basically you're stuck in the past until you can make the modification to get you back to the future?" Hal questioned.

"Yes," Brainy responded. "That is my current situation."

"How long will it take you to make this technology?" Batman asked.

"I can't say at this point," Brainy answered truthfully. "I theorize two months at the most."

"That's not long," Hal commented.

"He does have a 12th level intelligence," Superman commented.

Kid Flash gave a whistle.

"No wonder they call you Brainy," he commented.

Brainy took in a deep breath. So this was to be Bouncing Boy's equivalent.

"Yes, that's why they call be Brainy," he responded back evenly.

"If it'll take that long, you'll be staying in the mountain," Batman stated.

"What?!" several voices from the Team spoke up, though Robin seemed to be the only one okay with the arrangement.

The Boy Wonder stepped over and wrapped an arm around the android's neck. Brainy was a little surprised to see him do so.

"Cool. We found a friend for Red Tornado to talk to. Maybe even beat at chess," Robin stated.

Brainy just looked at the teen in mild surprise. Robin must be Lightning Lad's counterpart.

"You have extra room," Batman explained, sounding cross that he'd actually have to explain himself to the teenagers, "and he looks to be around your ages. He's staying."

Aqualad noticed the tone and nodded quickly.

"Understood sir," he answered.

"Good," Batman responded. "I'll make Red Tornado aware of this. Superman, come with me."

Superman shrugged at his android friend and followed after his fellow teammate.

"You're absolutely sure about him?" Batman questioned as the duo headed for the Team's caretaker.

"Yes," Superman responded. "I know his heritage will make everyone uneasy, but he's not like Brainiac. He's different. Trust me."

Batman made a non-committal noise, but he didn't continue the issue. Finding Red Tornado and explaining the situation to him was easy enough. Black Canary would be filled in once they were back at the Watchtower. The two returned to find Robin and Hal holding a casual conversation with the future hero.

"Hal, we're off," Batman ordered.

"So soon?" Hal asked before shrugging. "Fine. Cya around."

"Right," Brainy responded.

"We'll bring some tech for you to work with sometime tomorrow," Superman said to his friend, clasping his hand on the other's shoulder. "Just hang tight."

_Easy for you to say,_ Brainy thought with a slightly annoyed tone, but he didn't say it outloud. Instead, he responded with, "Sure."

Superman smiled, and giving him a final pat, headed off with his teammates for the pods. He didn't notice the glare Superboy was giving both Brainy and Superman, fueled by jealousy. Aqualad, who was very perceptive, noticed the glare on Superboy's face, and made a move to talk to him, but was stopped when said teen stormed off for the training room. Brainy had also noticed the teen storming off, and tried to remember what the archives said about his anger.

_This may be a long two months,_ he thought before he continued, _I wonder if the others know I'm missing. Hmm... probably not given the bubble's power. Oh well. At least I won't have to hear them complain to me about coming to this time period._

Brainy was pulled out of his inner monologue by Robin's arm reappearing around his neck. He looked at him questioningly.

"C'mon buddy! Time for the tour," he said.

"I already know the layout for the mountain," Brainy protested, before he found himself being pushed anyways.

"Yeah yeah. But let's pass some time and have a grand tour, shall we?" Robin responded, not taking no for an answer.

"I'll go make some cookies," Miss Martian stated, rushing for the kitchen.

"I'll help you," Kid Flash grinned, chasing after her.

"I better make sure the kitchen doesn't get set on fire," Artemis stated and followed after.

Aqualad, left to himself, gave off a sigh. He could already sense the tension built up between Superboy and Brainy, and neither had even said a word to each other. Being the only one left in the area, he decided to head for his room to do some mediation.

_This may be a long stay,_ Aqualad thought with a hint of worry.

* * *

"So you've been to the future before Superman?" Hal asked as the two walked down the Watchtower's corridors.

"It was interesting. It helped me learn my powers and skills," Superman nodded, restating his previous statements.

"Cool, cool," Hal nodded. "And you're positive he can be trusted?"

"With my life," Superman responded, adding an edge in his tone that dared Hal to question him.

Hal held up his hands in defense.

"Now now, just wondering. Not all of us have had the fun life of seeing what the future is like," Hal said with a good nature tone.

"I know it's hard to see Brainy as nothing but a Brainiac, but he's much different," Superman responded. "We can trust him. We'll just...have to keep him away from the public. They may not be so inclined to agree."

Hal nodded his head.

"No worries Supes," Hal said. "We'll keep an eye on him and make sure no one antagonizes him out of spite."

_Let's hope it doesn't come to that,_ Superman thought with a grim look.


	3. New Guy in the Field

**Back again. I wrote this into the late hours of the night, so there's bound to be mistakes that I and Word missed. Please feel free to point them out so I can correct them as soon as possible.**

**Also, Brainy may come off a little grouchy in this chapter (just a head's up), but once you see what he's been dealing with, I think you could possibly (hopefully) relate.**

* * *

It was three days later, after being thrown into the past, that Brainy would have to leave the safety of the mountain (if you could call living with a volatile Superboy _safe_). Within those days, the genius had been busily working on creating the proper devices for the time bubble. While turning primitive tech into futuristic tech should seem easy, especially to a Brainiac, the fact that he has to make the circuitry not already provided was the time consuming part. In secrecy, he was given Wayne Tech's state of the art items. Brainy of course understood while Superman had to deliver it at almost the dead of night: no one past the League knew that Batman was Bruce Wayne, so it was only logical to assume that the young heroes had no clue (minus Robin for obvious reasons).

So, he had been holed up in his temporary room designing old tech into tech he was familiar with. It was a good thing he was a walking-talking tool box, or else he'd be utterly screwed. While hidden away in his room, working day and night, he was occasionally approached by the other Team members (Red Tornado was kind enough to not bother Brainy at all). Robin would be the one to hold the longest one-sided conversations (the historical records forgot to mention how talkative the boy was up until he becomes Nightwing). He'd sit on the bed and just ramble on about anything and everything that came to his mind. Brainy had attempted to lock him out, but the teen would just hack the system and get back in. It was only then that Brainy truly missed COMPUTO; even if it was a traitor, at least he could operate the thing. He hadn't attempted to do anything with the mountain's system simply because he didn't want the others to get suspicious of him. He was only thankful that Robin didn't live there and had to leave at night, giving Brainy peace and quiet during those times.

M'gann was another who approached him, though if Brainy had to compare her with someone from his team, it'd be a mixture between Saturn Girl and Triplicate Girl. She was caring, and usually told him when they were eating (to which he'd respond that he doesn't need nourishment like they do). She treated him polietly, but she also seemed scared when around him. Brainy didn't bother to question her about this feeling because it wasn't his business; and he doesn't do well with other people's emotions.

Aqualad was also polite to him, and kept respectable distance. Brainy appreciated him the most since he allowed the android to go about his work uninterrupted like the rest of his team seemed determined to do. The leader would check on Brainy occasionally, to mention something or another, before he'd be off. Like Robin, he too would leave the mountain at night.

Artemis kept her distance, and would send him cold glances on the off chance Brainy left the room. She was like a female Timber Wolf, except that Timber Wolf wasn't mistrustful of his teammates. Brainy never paid her any mind because he was busy on his work and not on how she felt about him (definitely mistrustful, but he couldn't blame her). She too didn't live at the mountain.

Kid Flash was easily the annoying one of the group. Despite what he'd said the first day he arrived, the speedster was determined to learn about what became of him in the future. It drove Brainy mad, and he contemplated switching into his battle form just to get Kid to leave him alone, but he decided against the option. That would only give the League more reason to be distrustful of him. Happily, he wasn't a permanent resident of the mountain, letting Brainy enjoy his quiet nights.

Superboy was the one that confused Brainy the most. He remembered learning about the fact that Superboy was an angry person, but it had never mentioned as to why that was. The clone of Superman seemed to send him angry glares when Brainy ventured out of his room, and he'd usually stalk off to what Brainy believed to be the training room. It confused Brainy, and made him wonder if the boy already knew how dangerous Brainiac was.

So, it was three days after Brainy was thrust into the 21st century when Aqualad came into his room (knocking off course because the teen was respectful) and said that everyone was to meet in the communication room; Batman had an assignment for them.

"You do know I'm not here as a team member?" Brainy responded, laying down his work.

"Batman ordered it," Aqualad responded, though he sounded just as perplexed as Brainy felt.

Brainy weighed his options and decided it was in his best interest to follow the order. Yes, it would probably prove that Brainy wasn't an enemy they should fear, but it was mostly because he didn't want Batman on his case. No matter the century, no matter the opponents Brainy had faced, Batman was still the scariest being Brainy had encountered; it was best to just stay in his good graces.

So, that's how Brainy found himself standing along with the Team, looking at the screen that had Batman's face on it. He looked as charming and cheery as ever. Black Canary and Red Tornado were among them as well.

"Metallo has gathered up some thugs and are striking at various Wayne Tech facilities along the ports," Batman informed the group. "You seven handle it and make sure Metallo doesn't get his hands on any of the equipment."

"Excuse me, but why am I here?" Brainy spoke up. "I am to build a time bubble to return me to my time, remember?"

"I do," Batman responded. "But this mission looks like something you can help the Team with."

_Because I'm made of metal like him?_ Was what Brainy thought, but he knew better than to say it out loud. He kept his mouth shut and stared at the screen.

"He's gotten more technologically advanced since the last time the League encountered him, and we want to avoid him getting any more advanced," Batman continued. "You have your mission. Batman out."

The screen went blank as he cut off the line.

"Alright then, let's go," Aqualad responded, leading the way to the garage.

Robin wrapped an arm around Brainy's neck (something he did all the time) and was grinning madly.

"Just stick with me and you won't have any problem," Robin said.

"I can handle myself in a fight," Brainy responded. "I'm not just the brains left behind while my team went on missions."

"You know, I didn't think androids could get grouchy," Kid commented as the speedster passed by the two.

"Maybe he has a chip that needs removed," Artemis stated coldly as she passed by as well.

Brainy sent her an aggravated look, though he could feel the glare on his back sent by none other than Superboy. He decided to not dignify the jab with a remark and simply strode to their mode of transportation faster, attempting to remove Robin's arm from his neck but finding that difficult to do.

_This is going to be long, _Brainy thought to himself. _Very, very long._

* * *

By time the Team arrived on the scene, one warehouse was already up in flames, prompting Kid Flash to helpfully say, "Ooooh, Bats's going to be mad when he hears about this."

"M'gann, land us," Aqualad ordered.

"Hold on, I'm trying to find a place to land," Miss Martian responded, scanning the area for a good place.

"Don't bother," Superboy snapped as he stood up. "Just open the hangar."

"What? Are you planning on just jumping into the fray?" Artemis questioned.

Superboy didn't answer her question; he simply made his way to the back, waiting for the telepath to do as he said. The action alone was the answer.

"Huh, a surprise drop? Let's try it," Kid Flash said, standing up as well.

"I'm all for it," Robin grinned, heading for the back as well.

Unlike the rest of the Team, who had sensed Superboy's anger early on and kept distance from him, Robin seemed blissfully unaware and stood next to the clone. Either he trusted the clone or he was really, really stupid were the two options Brainy had come up with. Artemis muttered something about "machoism" but she got up as well. This left Brainy to do nothing but follow the crowd, and he too was standing with the others.

"Meet up with us once you've placed this somewhere," Aqualad instructed to the Martian as he walked over to the rest of the group.

"Okay. Safe landings!" Miss Martian said as she opened the Bio-Ship's hangar door.

"We will sweetcheeks," Kid said with a flirty smile.

Artemis rolled her eyes in obvious disgust and pushed the teen out of the transport, sending him to the ground below. Superboy jumped out, followed by the rest of his team. Brainy landed easily, since he'd used his flight ring to slow down his decent. Superboy had landed with obvious show of force, creating a crater from his strength alone. Kid Flash had managed to gain some footing just before he had hit the ground hard. Robin, Aqualad, and Artemis had used their agility skills to get them to the ground safely. Superboy's entrance had tipped off Metallo and his seven men of various shapes and sizes, who now confronted the team of teenagers.

"Well well well. I break into Wayne Tech, and I get sent the brats of the League," Metallo mocked. "Shouldn't all of you be getting ready for naptime?"

Kid Flash was ready to send the metal man a quip, but he was stopped by Superboy giving a terrifying roar of pure anger. The teen didn't wait for Aqualad to give a plan of attack; he simply went in for the punch. Brainy, knowing the history of Superman's villains, quickly protested to the attack.

"Wait! Stay away from him!" Brainy shouted.

Superboy ignored the warning. Metallo didn't look phased; instead, he removed part of the front of his shirt, revealing a glowing green rock. When Superboy drew closer to the rock, he began to feel his body grow heavy, before he practically collapsed in front of Metallo.

"What...?" Superboy asked, looking at his own hands.

"Kid-" Aqualad began to say before he was interrupted by the speedster.

"I'm on it!" K. Flash responded, dashing at their weakened teammate.

Before Metallo or his men could retaliate to the speeding hero, the teen grabbed the clone and brought him back to the team. The distance helped Superboy regain his strength.

"What...happened?" Superboy questioned, sounding confused and angry all at once.

"Kryptonite," Brainy informed. "It's Superman's weakness, and it seems that trait was passed on to you. No doubt it was a fail-safe in case you went rogue."

Metallo surveyed the young team that dared to face him, and was gripped with a moment of fear when he saw the tell-tale symbol of Brainiac. No matter if you were a hero or villain, Brainiac was still a name spoken with fear.

_A Brainiac? This one is different,_ the villain thought. _Smaller. Perhaps even weaker._

"You two," Metallo instructed to two of his men to his left. "Handle the small one."

The two men looked at the team, and came to two conclusions on who the small one was.

"The Boy Wonder or the...Brainiac?" one of the man asked.

"The Brainiac," Metallo responded.

"Uhh, boss-"

"Just do it," Metallo snapped.

The two men were unsure of what to do next, but they decided to follow Metallo's orders and ran at the android. Brainy was not impressed, but Robin was eager to interrupt their advancement, and taking out three flash grenades, he threw them at the two. They exploded and created a blinding light, interrupting their attack. The Boy Wonder then ran forward and kneed one of them in the chin. Robin grinned to himself, but didn't count on one of Metallo's other men approach from behind. He was only held off by an arrow hitting him in the head.

"Thanks 'mis," Robin said, giving his teammate a thumbs up.

"Don't forget the second guy," Artemis responded.

"Oh right," Robin said, looking to see the other guy rubbing his eyes, trying to will away the light.

Robin kicked him in the head, sending him to the ground.

_Why was I sent here again? They can obviously handle this without my help,_ Brainy thought to himself, watching Robin, Artemis and Kid Flash fight the other four men Metallo had employed.

Aqualad had stuck behind with the still healing Superboy, and Miss Martian had yet to arrive. Brainy had stayed behind simply because he didn't want to get in the way.

"How long is this supposed to stay in effect?" Superboy demanded.

"It should be reversed any time now," Brainy responded. "He was using a normal green type, so the effects should be over soon."

"There's more than one type?" Aqualad asked, clearly surprised by the answer.

"Yes," Brainy answered. "And each have a different response."

"So I can't touch Metallo without losing my powers?" Superboy demanded, sounding angry once more.

"Afraid not," Aqualad answered.

Superboy gave a menacing snarl. Metallo watched with some satisfaction at the clone's helplessness, but his men weren't doing as he ordered. While he let the three young members face off against the rest of his men, he went after the Brainiac. The Atlantian called forth his weapons, ready to defend Superboy and Brainy against the metal man. Brainy, recognizing that he would have to fight Metallo since it was only him and Aqualad, transformed into his other mode, one that surprised both Aqualad and Metallo.

"As I said," Brainy stated, "I can handle my own."

"We'll see about that," Metallo stated, lunging at Brainy.

Brainy met Metallo halfway and pushed the villain as far from Superboy as possible, causing the two to land close to the water. Miss Martian arrived, landing beside Superboy in worry.

"What happened?" she asked.

"Kryptonite," Aqualad answered. "Stay with him."

Not waiting for her response, the leader ran for the fight between Brainy and Metallo; both of them were trading punches for punches. Using the element of surprise, Aqualad drew his Water-Bearers and shot water at the metal man. The surprise attack left Metallo open for a hit from Brainy, which the android delievered on, sending Metallo backwards.

"Cute," Metallo muttered. "But it's going to take more than a simple attack to take me down."

"I'm sure," Brainy responded, powering up one of his laser beams and shooting it at the Kryptonite in Metallo's chest.

The metal man hadn't reacted fast enough, and felt the kryptonite shatter upon impact. With his power-source taken, he felt his energy slowly disappear. But he wasn't about to let the Brainiac get away with it. Relying on the last of his superhuman strength, he ran at Brainy and pushed them both into the water.

"I don't have to breathe, even in water," Metallo said, pushing them further into the depths below. "How long will you last?"

"I don't need to breathe either," Brainy responded, waiting for the loss of the kryptonite to take effect.

"But how well can your exoskin handle the water?" Metallo questioned, thinking he had the upper-hand.

"You shouldn't assume that just because I have metal, means I'll be susceptible to water," Brainy smirked, changing his form.

Metallo began to feel weaker and weaker. Once Brainy sensed the change, he grabbed Metallo's arm and stopped their descent. Feeling no resistance, Brainy began to swim for the surface. Aqualad waited a minute after Brainy was pushed into the water before he jumped in, finding the android swimming up with Metallo in tow. He swam down and grabbed Metallo's other arm, pulling him up with his superior swimming skill. In no time, they broke surface and threw Metallo onto the docks. Robin sat on the villain, ensuring he wouldn't escape, even though the man couldn't at that point.

"Cool other form," Robin grinned. "That was citing."

"Citing?" Brainy repeated as he swam to the dock.

"He likes to make up words," Aqualad supplied, swimming to the edge.

"You know, like exciting. 'Cept without the ex-," Robin answered, helping pull Brainy up.

"I see," Brainy said as he was helped back onto the dock. "So is that it?"

"Basically," Kid Flash shrugged.

"I'll call it in to Batman," Aqualad stated, stepping off to the side.

"How are you feeling?" Miss Martian asked her teammate, still looking at him with worry.

"Fine," Superboy grounded out, giving Brainy a glare.

Brainy still wasn't sure what he did to earn Superboy's ire, but he couldn't focus on that. He went about collecting the shards of the kryptonite. He got them all into his palm, but was surprised when Robin came forward and stole the pile. He placed it in a small box, and gave Brainy a small smile.

"Don't worry, it's going to a safe place," Robin stated.

_Batman's,_ Brainy thought, remembering that Alfred had recorded once that kryptonite had been hidden away in a vault in the Batcave. It was there to keep it out of the hands of Superman's enemies, and there to be used if Superman ever decided to turn evil. It was at that vault that Brainy had gained the kryptonite that he had hid away. However, he kept quiet and nodded.

Batman arrived in no time, and Green Arrow decided to tag along. Much like Green Lantern, he didn't go on the attack against Brainy; he merely commented on how young the android looked. The two League members then cuffed Metallo, gave a few words of congrats, and then left with the villain; his men would be dealt with by the police.

"So, job well done!" Kid Flash said. "Newbie, great work in the field."

Brainy gave an annoyed groan, but he didn't bother to respond to the title given to him.

"If we're done, can we go back so I can get back to work?" Brainy questioned.

"I say we celebrate with pizza," Robin announced, _completely_ ignoring Brainy.

"Pizza!" Kid Flash cheered.

Miss Martian's eyes lit up at the suggestion and she nodded, "That sounds good."

Artemis shrugged, "Sure, why not."

Aqualad wasn't as excited at the rest of his team, but he kept an eye on the other two. Superboy was still sporting a glare on his face (what his problem was was beyond Aqualad at this point), and Brainy looked to be sporting one of his own, clearly annoyed. He just wanted to get back to work. While it wasn't that he didn't want to stay with the heroes of old, it was simply that he didn't like staying in a time that hated him and that he had no way back (yet).

_At this rate, I'm never leaving,_ Brainy thought as he was led back to the Bio-Ship.


	4. Getting the Whole Picture

**I'm back with a new chapter. I've been rather busy as of late, but I managed to get this done with. Hopefully you'll all enjoy it. And sorry for a grouchy Brainy, but the tides are turning, and grouchy Brainy will begin to disappear after this chapter.**

* * *

Brainy had learned pretty quickly that he'd only be able to get any work done at night. Robin and, to a lesser extent, Kid Flash had made it very apparent that they would not let him be stuck in his room all day to work on his project. It was aggravating to say the least, but he eventually learned that there was no way around it, and he was forced to accept the fact that his days would be occupied by the Team (which Robin was dragging him into) and his nights would be spent working. On the chances the Team was off on a mission or in a training session that Brainy wasn't invited to, the android would use it as his chance to work uninterrupted.

The new accommodations put Brainy back even further on his work. It was aggravating to say the least. Not that Brainy didn't like the past, but he just wasn't pleased with the situation he had been thrown into. Any other time he would have enjoyed the idea of visiting the past, but being stuck in the past, where his name alone could get him killed by civilians, heroes and villains...well, it wasn't exactly an ideal set up. And it wasn't helpful when Brainy had to report the progress to Batman and receive the famous batglare he'd receive in turn. It wasn't Brainy's fault Bats couldn't keep his protégé in line and not bother the android when he was working.

* * *

Brainy was beginning his work; today was a training day, leaving Brainy with some time to get his work put in. He was looking forward to the silence when he heard his door open without permission. The android didn't even need to look to know who had entered unannounced.

"Don't you have to go train?" Brainy asked.

"Yep. You gotta come too," Robin said, walking over and grabbing Brainy's arm.

"What?!" Brainy asked as he was pulled out of his seat.

"Artemis couldn't show up for some reason, so we're down a person. We need you to fill in," Robin responded as he dragged the android out of the room.

"Well can't Tornado or Canary fill in or something?" Brainy demanded, debating on if he should detach his arm at this point.

"Nope," Robin answered. "They're facilitating, duh."

"Of course," Brainy growled. There went his free morning. "What am I being forced into?"

"Sparring," Robin answered simply.

"Wonderful," Brainy said with a roll of his eyes.

"Awh c'mon. It'll be 'citing," Robin grinned. "Didn't you do this sort of stuff in the future? With the uh...the Legion?"

"Yes we did this sort of stuff, except _I _would be the one facilitating the spars. And it wasn't against each other; it was in our holographic projector room," Brainy responded. "The room was set up with a real-world simulator to better our defenses and offenses."

"A holo room?" Robin questioned. "That sounds cool."

The two heroes arrived at the training room, finding the other teenage heroes bar Artemis already waiting. Black Canary was standing in front of the assembled line while Red Tornado was off to the side. Robin pulled Brainy into the room, even though the android wasn't putting up a fight.

"Found 'im."

"It's not like I was hiding," Brainy snapped.

"Someone's forgot to remove their grouchy chip this morning," Kid teased, only to earn a glare from the android and a subtle whack upside his head from Aqualad. "Owh! Really dude?"

Aqualad remained silent, and betrayed no emotion about the situation. Black Canary shook her head and gave off a loud whistle, getting their attention.

"Alright, you all know it's your spar day," she stated. "I'll break you off into pairs. Red and I will be making sure you don't harm each other past normal battle scars. We'll do this one at a time, alright?"

The six teens nodded.

"Good. M'gann, Kid. You're up first," Canary instructed.

"I'll try not to hurt you, sweet cheeks," Kid flirted as the rest of the team moved off to the side.

M'gann flushed a little, since she was a bit new to flirting. That, and she wasn't sure on how to let her teammate down easy. Brainy was tempted to tell the teen that he had no chance with the Martian, but decided to just keep his mouth shut. So instead, he watched as the platform lit up and the two combatants stand across from each other. Kid Flash sent M'gann and wink before he ran at her. She waited until he was close enough to her before she phased out completely, sending him flying through where she had stood and into the wall opposite of where she stood. M'gann landed back on the platform, just in time to see the speedster slump to the ground.

"Sorry," she apologized.

"Don't apologize," Canary stated. "You did well."

Robin snickered as he helped his friend sit up.

"I don't think you'll have to worry about hurting her," Robin teased.

"You are so not helpful," Kid Flash whispered harshly.

"Alright then. Aqualad and Robin, you're up," Canary announced once M'gann left the platform.

Robin patted his friend once more before hopping onto the platform. Brainy glanced over at Superboy, understanding that he'd be his sparring partner, to see that the teen was looking really, really mad. Which was more anger than it had been other days.

_What is his problem?_ Brainy thought to himself. _This isn't the Superboy that's in the records._

He watched the fight between Aqualad and Robin with mild interest. The two were evenly matched, but Robin was more mobile than the Atlantian, so it was no surprise when Robin became the victor after pinning down their leader. With the spar over, that left only Brainy and Superboy to go up, much to the android's displeasure. It was already obvious that the clone disliked Brainy for reasons the android couldn't think of. It's not like the teen had any of Superman's memories, and Brainy doubted that he had any interaction with Brainiac. What was going through his mind was beyond Brainy, and it terrified the android slightly to be facing off against the powerful clone when angry.

Reluctantly, Brainy stepped onto the platform, standing opposite of the raged teenage clone. This was most likely a sick joke on Canary's part, or maybe Superboy had really been paired up with Artemis for the day before she had to bow out. Either way, Brainy was not at all pleased with the fact that he was now forced to spar when he could be doing something more useful. Like finishing up the time bubble before he got chewed out by Batman. Canary looked between the two, and a flash of something appeared in her eyes before it was gone. What it was, was beyond Brainy, but she instead said,

"Go."

The second she finished the word, Superboy launched himself at Brainy. Suspecting the approach, Brainy launched himself into the air, getting away from the attack. Superboy followed his movements and snarled fiercely, though he made no move to fly up to him, something that made Brainy wonder why he hadn't. Instead, he jumped at Brainy, gripping onto his legs before the android could move out of reach and pulled him back to the ground. Brainy quickly transformed into his other mode, though Superboy still kept a death grip hold on his legs. It did help lessen the pain upon impact with the platform, along with the pain he received from the punch Superboy gave him.

Activating the energy beam in his palm, he shot it at Superboy, getting the teen off of his legs. The beam wasn't strong enough to get him out of his general vicinity, but it was enough to get him at arm's length. The teen rounded on Brainy once more, and shot for him. Brainy got into the air again. This angered Superboy greatly, if the look on his face was anything to go by.

"Stop running away," Superboy snarled as he jumped for Brainy again.

Brainy moved aside, missing the grab. The android continued to move out of the way, every time Superboy launched at him. Each miss resulted in Superboy growing angrier and angrier.

"Get down here," Superboy snarled.

"Sorry, but it's safer up here," Brainy answered, sending an energy beam down at the angered superteen.

The blast sent Superboy back again. Before he could recover, the android sent another one, making it powerful enough to push Superboy into the wall of mountain. The clone snarled angrily, one powerful enough to make even Brainy pause. The clone launched himself at Brainy, snagging him once more, and bringing him down to the ground. Superboy punched him in the face, the hit powerful enough to revert his forms. Superboy pulled back his fist to punch him again, but Canary whistled loudly, grabbing their attention.

"That's enough you two," she ordered.

Superboy didn't move for a moment, before he got off of Brainy and left the room, punching the wall as left. Brainy followed his movement, perplexed but thankful to survive. Without it needing to be spoken, the exercise was over. Robin hopped onto the platform and helped up the android.

"You okay?" he asked, a hint of concern evident.

"Nothing that I can't fix myself," Brainy answered.

Robin grinned, though his hold on Brainy's arm didn't let up.

"How about we go outside for some fresh air," Robin proposed as he dragged Brainy off once more.

"I have work to do," Brainy argued.

"Yeah, but you should really get some fresh air," Robin argued. "Plus, it'll give us a chance to talk without eavesdroppers."

Brainy remained silent at the response, and decided to let himself be guided out of the mountain. Maybe he'd be able to get some answers about the clone that were bugging Brainy.

Canary watched the teenagers leave. She had known of Superboy's anger, and had been working on it for some time, but even she has never seen the look on his face when he faced the Brainiac. She had felt bad about pitting him against the angered superhero, but kept with her decision. Unlike the other League members who were mistrustful of the android, Canary didn't have much of a problem with him. At first she had been suspicious, but after she got to be around him, she found he was no different than a normal teenager, san for the fact that he was smarter than even her. Even still, he presented himself in a non-threatening manner, so Canary never thought to attack him.

"Interesting," Red Tornado commented. "Superboy's aggressive level rose to uncharted levels. By my calculations, it began when Brainiac 5 entered the room, and continued to rise when the two were fighting."

"Keep an eye on the two, and make sure they're never alone," Canary instructed. "I fear Superboy may unleash his anger."

Red Tornado nodded, before leaving the room himself.

* * *

"So how's the bubble going?" Robin asked.

Brainy sent him a glare, which did nothing to ruin Robin's good-natured smile. The two were outside of the mountain, though they weren't very far from the physical entrance. Robin hadn't bothered to change out of his outfit, and was laying on his back, staring at the blue sky. Brainy opted to just sit down.

"I'm far behind. I would be gone by now if I wasn't getting distracted all the time," Brainy responded.

"Don't you like this time period?" Robin asked. "It's not every day you get to go to the past...well, maybe for you it is."

"I make it a point not to interfere with the timeline," Brainy responded, mentally adding in _too much_. "Besides, being a Brainiac in this time period isn't a good thing."

"Yeah, I guess you're right on that one," Robin responded, sounding thoughtful. "But hey, aren't we making it fun for you while you're here?"

Brainy scoffed.

"Yes. Being surrounded by members of the team who either don't want to talk to you or want to beat you up is something to look forward to," Brainy responded.

"We're not that mean, are we?" Robin asked, and something in his tone made Brainy feel a little guilty.

"...Not all of you," Brainy responded. "Aqualad is at least nice enough to not bother me or treat me differently from the rest of you. And you at least talk to me on a daily basis."

"'M trying to get you more involved with the Team," Robin answered somberly, sitting up as he spoke the words.

"What for?" Brainy asked. "Not to sound rude, but I figured Batman would have you keep an eye on me to make sure I wasn't just Brainiac in a new look who brain-washed Superman into tricking all of you."

"Well, he does ask me about you from time to time, but I haven't been told to spy on you or anything," Robin responded with a shrug.

"So why do you try and include me?" Brainy asked, sounding genuinely perplexed.

"Because I consider you a friend," Robin answered with a tone that made it seem like the obvious answer.

Brainy was stunned, and fell silent.

"Okay sure I was a little suspicious when I first met you, but then you sort of changed and so I decided to get you more involved with us so you'd enjoy your time in the past," Robin continued.

"Changed?"

"Well, not changed. But I saw you differently and realized it wasn't cool to judge you just because your name was Brainiac," Robin responded.

"What made you change your mind?" Brainy asked.

"Well, you're more human than him," Robin answered.

Brainy was stunned once more. The answer wasn't what he was expecting.

"You look more human, and you act more human, even though you totally work as a robot. C'mon dude, even you need to sleep more than 2 hours," Robin said, slightly scolding the android next to him for his lack of sleep. "So I decided to not judge you based on your name, and you're cool, so I've been bugging you like a friend would. Though I'm guessing you find it annoying."

Yes was the obvious response, but Brainy couldn't bring himself to answer that. So instead, he shook his head.

"No, it's alright. It sort of reminds me of my fellow teammates, who'd never let me get anything done unless it was important," Brainy answered.

"Do you miss the 31st century?" Robin asked.

"No. I know I can get back," Brainy answered. "I simply wanted to get back because of the...treatment from the others."

"Well, don't worry about that," Robin responded. "We'll show them that you shouldn't be judged for your name alone."

Brainy gave the human a small smile, and said to him, "Thanks."

The two fell into a comfortable silence before Brainy decided to bring up the issue that had been bothering him since he'd been assigned to the mountain.

"Is there a reason why Superboy wants to murder me any chance he sees me?"

"He doesn't want to murder you," Robin answered.

"Care to explain his always angered mood?" Brainy questioned.

"Well... how much of his past do you know?" Robin asked.

"That he was part of Project Cadmus that had used Superman's DNA to make a clone, which you, Aqualad and Kid Flash infiltrated and set the clone free," Brainy responded.

"Okay good, so you already know the basics. Well you see when we were getting him to come with us, we promised we'd let him meet Superman. And we did, and...Superman didn't take to him immediately," Robin answered.

Brainy blinked at the response. This didn't match up with the records, which detailed that Superman had mentored Superboy. This answer threw the android for a loop, especially since it seemed to go against Superman's character.

"Care to explain?" Brainy asked.

"Well, when he first met Superboy...he ignored him," Robin answered. "He didn't say a word; he just left. And Superman hasn't talked to him yet. So Superboy gets really furious whenever the subject about Superman is brought up."

Brainy nodded.

"So I'm guessing he's mad at me because Superman said I was his friend, which to Superboy, is sort of a slap in the face since I'm the descendant of one of his greatest enemies, and yet Superboy, his own clone, is ignored," Brainy stated.

"Bingo," Robin nodded.

Brainy frowned, not because he was annoyed that Superboy was wrongly placing blame onto him, but because of what was said about Superman's actions to Supboy. This didn't sound anything like Superman, which made it all the more bothersome.

_What has Clark been doing?_ he thought.

"Thanks," Brainy stated to the young teen. "I think I understand things a little better now."

"Not a problem," Robin grinned. "Wanna grab some tacos for everyone?"

"...Sure," Brainy responded, holding back a sigh as he got to his feet.

_I may have to delay my return,_ Brainy thought to himself as the two walked back into the mountain to use some of the cycles._ I need to have a talk with Superman about this behavior. Besides, it's not like the future is going anywhere._


End file.
